Interview: Jami Morgan of Adventures

We recently had the opportunity to speak with Jami Morgan of Adventures about their debut album ‘Supersonic Home’ and their upcoming run of shows with Whirr.

So, to get things started can you just reiterate your name and what you do in the band?Jami: I’m Jami and I play drums in Adventures.

This is the first of two questions that mention Code Orange. I know that 75% of Code Orange is in the band, but what made you guys decide to start a band like Adventures? Did the songwriting happen naturally and you knew that it wouldn’t fit or was there some other catalyst? Jami: I think, you know, we were in High School. We were in like 9th or 10th grade and we just wanted to different stuff and play in different bands. We wanted to have fun and we liked another style of music. I think with some of the Code Orange stuff, there was stuff starting to seep in and was coming out a way we didn’t want to. None of us are really into Emotional Hardcore, and I think us liking an alternative style of music was starting to turn Code Orange, even on our seven inches, into something we didn’t want it to be. So, we kind of ramped up Adventures to give some of our other influence out there so that Code Orange could become more of what we wanted it to be. At least in my mind.

Last May, you guys made what some would call a lateral move from No Sleep Records to Run For Cover Records. What about Run For Cover attracted you guys to the label and ultimately, how has the transition helped you guys as a band?Jami: This is no knock to No Sleep, I just saw the way that RFC promoted their bands and that when a new record came out for their bands, it was something special and important. It wasn’t just another record. It’s like with Code Orange and Deathwish, when I needed someone to facilitate the ideas I had promotion wise and get out their to people and make it a big deal. That’s what really attracted us to the label. We made that change while we were writing this record. And we wrote ‘Supersonic Home’ at the exact same time, on opposite days of the Code Orange record that we just out out. And at the time we were like “these are going to be our two biggest records, and we needed the two best resources we have currently.” Those were Run For Cover and Deathwish.

I also like the people involved, and there are bands that we’re close with on Run For Cover and that’s just kind of how it went. Once again, that’s no dis to No Sleep. They were great about putting the word out.

This is going to be the last question with any mention of Code Orange, but considering how close I Am King and Supersonic Home were released, would you say that either of the two had an influence in how you were writing for the other? That is, if they were written around the same time. If not, do you approach writing songs differently depending on which band it’s being written for? Jami: I think it’s the opposite. Now, as soon as we got an idea of what we wanted the Code Orange and the new Code Orange record to be, what we wanted Adventures to be, even aesthetically, became clearer. So that we could facilitate the ideas we had and make two totally different records that just look and feel totally different. We made them side by side, but we didn’t want them to be anything alike. Hopefully some people like both.

I touched on this in my review of the new record, but each Adventures release seems to be leagues above the rest. Would you attribute the growth in songwriting to any particular influences? Jami: I think it’s definitely just a thing with timing. One of the big things with Adventures is that we didn’t want to do an LP for a long time. You know, I wish the Code Orange LP was our first LP. Not to say that I don’t like our other work, but it feels better to start with something you’re all into, and that you all love. And we had the opportunity to do that with Adventures. We were looking around to see what we like, but also what’s not totally out there. So, we began to take aesthetically in sonically a different take on what we like. We just wanted to write an interesting and fun, easy to listen to alt. rock record. Like a Third Eye Blind record. Something colorful and with nice melodies, but with something to sink your teeth into as well. We also wanted to make sure that the aesthetic was really there.

And also, unlike the Code Orange thing, Adventures is going to more stay the course. With Code Orange we’re always evolving it and changing the sound, and that’s not to say we won’t do the same with Adventures. But it’s the first record, and by the next record, we’re hoping to have really kind of found our groove with this thing.

I’m excited. I love hearing the growth between each release, and I’m honestly excited to hear whatever you guys do next. Jami: Thanks, man.

How would you describe Supersonic Home to somebody that’s never listened to your band before?Jami: In my head, what I wanted it to be, is a catchy and fun record. I wanted it to be sugary, but not in a super pop punk way. I wanted it to sound like how the cover looks, this colorful and weird world. This is more of a colorful way of expressing ourselves like we do in Code Orange. I would say we take influence from Lemonhead, Archers of Loaf, The Cranberries. But we wanted it to be fun, but making sure you can still really sink your teeth into it. The cover of the record definitely explains how I view it.

Are there any immediate plans for a new single that can be talked about? I know that personally, I would love to see you guys do something with “Tension.”Jami: I keep hearing that, so maybe we will do that. I think when you’re writing the record, you think about singles differently than when it comes out. I think that will probably be a single. I would like to do a couple of videos. I had an idea for a video for the last song, “Supersonic Home”, but I think we’ll do that later on. I think the next one we need to do is that song “Tension”, because that’s such a fun, catchy track.

Yeah, those harmonies are incredible too. Jami: Will Yip is really helpful with that stuff. Reba and Kimi are really good with coming up with their own harmonies and we came in with a bunch of stuff. I know that people say this stuff about him all the time, but we came in and told him what we wanted to do, and he was our friend, and helped us accomplish it in a way that nobody else we’ve worked with did. I think he does that with each band that he works with, and you may not like all of it, but he helps them do what they set out to do.

Right, I love Will’s work. I feel like when a band works with him, the product is always incredible. Jami: He makes you better! Here’s the thing, he does different thing with different bands. Some of my friends bands don’t write anything until they’re in the studio with him. That’s great. We in the past, we want to write every single thing. I don’t know that it’s going to be like that forever, but we brought in the whole thing and he just saw something in it. He just made it sound good, and he helped us with percussion. The way I first described it to him and how I heard it in my head, that’s how he made it sound.

Yeah, he’s a genius. I don’t know what more to say than that.Jami: He’ll be something in the long run. Something more than any of us can see right now.

Absolutely.

You guys are going to be heading out on tour with Whirr in April. How excited are you guys for that run of shows?Jami: I’m very excited. I like Whirr a lot, and I like their music a lot. I really like their vibe. A big thing with me and bands, I love bands that have aesthetics that I can really latch onto. You know when it comes to music, it can be totally original or it can be a little bit nostalgic, and I think they do that very well. I like them a lot, and I’m excited to tour with them.

You guys seem to work with shoegaze-y bands a lot. Is that something that you do on purpose because you feel the sound works well with your own?Jami: To me, Adventures, I can name ten bands that I link Adventures up with in my head sonically. On this side of the coin, there’s a lot of bands that I don’t like the vibe of. There’s a lot of niche’s in this genre, and a lot of it I don’t really like. We try to keep Adventures linked with bands that we like. Pity Sex is different. We’ve known Pity Sex for a long time AND I love their music AND I love them as people. Whirr we didn’t really know, but if you look at our record release show, it’s them and Give. Those are two bands that we really like. We don’t want to tour with just any pop punk or emo band. We have to like their vibe and their music.

Are there any songs from Supersonic Home that you are most looking forward to playing live while on tour? Jami:We just played a bunch of it for the first time with Turnstile and Superheaven. I just love playing these songs. I didn’t really like playing the songs before, but I liked listening to them. This is the first time that I really like what we’re playing. I think we all kind of feel that way. It’s pretty much going to be that whole record. The last song [“Supersonic Home”] is really emotional for me to play, and I love playing that song. It’s pounding and fun to play. That’s usually the last one we play.

I actually just watched your set from one of the Tunrstile show’s, and I was blown away at great these songs sound live. Jami: That’s awesome. We’re still getting used to it. I think that by the time April hits, it’s going to be really good. These songs, in a way, are a lot easier to play as opposed to our past work. The old songs were kind of all over the place. I just really like playing this record. I could play this record all the way through.

They’re great. When I heard “Dream Blue Haze” live, which is my favorite song on the album, I was floored. Jami: I really like that song too. It’s top two or three for me as well. That’s the song that we wrote that set the course. This is track 1, we all know it. This is how we’re going to set it off, and we’re going to build this record from here. The same can be said for the last song as well. This album just happened so naturally.

I know I’ve said this a lot, but the album is great. It’s one of very few albums that I can play in my house without being told to turn it off. So, there’s that. Jami: Thanks, man. I appreciate you checking out our record. Especially with all these great records coming out, like that Title FIght record, and I’m really loving that. Thank you again.

Thanks for taking the time to chat with us Jami. Jami: Talk to you soon then!